Socket plug



pril 14, 1925.

E. SLADE SO CKET PLUG Filed Oct. 12, 1923 ATTOE Y5 Patented Apr. 14, 1925.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HAROLD E. SLADE, OF NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, ASSIGNOR TO BEAVER MACHINE 8a TOOL COMPANY, INC., 01 NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

SOCKET PLUG.

Application filed October 12, 1923. Serial No. 668,084.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, HAROLD E. SLADE, a citizen of the United States, residing in Newark. in the county of Essex and State of New Jersey, have invented an Improvement in Socket Plugs, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a socket plug and more particularly to that type of socket plug adapted to be inserted directly mto the socket member of an ordinary lighting or other fixture and to engage the same and the other terminal of the fixture so as to make it possible to connect another plug thereto or completing a circuit to a fan, a lamp, utensils of one kind or another, or any other translating device.

Heretofore in making connections of this kind with the use of an ordinary plug due to the shape or size of a globe or other attachment difliculty has been experienced in attaching a plug to a socket. In fact in some instances it is substantially impossible to attach the plug, to the socket without first removing the globe or shade or other device which may be attached to the lighting fix ture. The object of my invention is to overcome this difficulty by the provision of an extension socket plug, the casing of which is sufficiently long to extend through usual types of shades or globes, the construction of the socket plug being such that at one end it is adapted to be passed directly, that is in a straight line into the screw socket of an ordinary fixture and to engage the same frictionally while at the opposite end it is provided with socket terminals for receiving a plug of any suitable type.

In carrying out the invention the socket plug made in accordance therewith is fitted with a contact member adapted to frictionally engage the screw socket of a fixture and the contact member is mounted in the casing and adapted to be actuated in a manr nor similar to that in which shears are actuated so as to obtain sufficient leverage to cause the contact member to engage the screw socket with sufficient force to be maintained in position relatively thereto. The plug socket also includes a contact member in an oppositely disposed position so as to cause the same to be balanced or to evenly. engage the screw socket or shell of the fixture. Suitable means are also employed for actuating the movable contact member and the socket plug is fitted with terminals adapted to contact with the knife blades or other terminals of a suitable plug to com plete the circuit through the socket plug which is preferably completed at least on one side of the line by devices for maintaining the movable contact member in a normal position in which it extends an appreciable distance beyond the surface of the casing in which it is mounted, all of, which will be hereinafter more particularly described.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is an elevation and partial cross section illustrating the use of my improved socket plug.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of one of the casing members showing the parts of the socket plug operatively mounted therein.

Fig. 3 is a section on line 33, Fig. 2.

gig. 4 is a section on line 14.-, Fig. 2, an

Fig. 5 is a perspective view illustrating the form of friction grip employed to balance the contact member when the socket plug is operatively engaged with the screw shell of a socket of a lighting fixture.

Referring to the drawing, the socket plug made in accordance with my invention preferably comprises a two part casing, the members of which are indicated at 10 and 11 respectively. Exteriorly these members are substantial counterparts of one another and are connected to each other by any suitable means. As illustrated, for example, bolts 12 and 13 may be employed for this purpose. In the casing member 10 there is a recess 14 adapted to receive the head of the bolt 12, and in a corresponding position in the member 11 there is a recess 15 adapted to receive the nut turned down on the screw threaded end of the bolt. It will be noted that this bolt passes through openings provided therefor in the parts of the casing which are placed in an offset position relatively to the center line thereof. Similarly the member 10 is recessed as indicated at 16 to receive the headof the bolt 13 and the member 11 is recessed at 17 to receive the nut turned down on the screw threaded end of the bolt 13. By this means the members of the casing are securely connected to one another.

The adjacent and abutting faces of the members of the casing are provided with recesses 19 to receive a lever 20, one end of which, as indicated at 21, is provided with a series of spaced teeth to form a contact end and to be adapted to engage the screw threaded shell of the socket member of a fixture. The lever is mounted on the bolt 12 and is adapted to be normally maintained in a position in which the contact end 21 projects an appreciable distance beyond the side of the casing. The lever 20 is actuated by a button 22 which passes through recesses provided therefor in the members of the casing and at the inner end of the button there is a flange which contacts with the inner or adjacent end of the lever 20.

The inner end of the lever 20 is normally maintained against the flanged end of the button by a helical spring 24 ada ted to be received in a recess 25 provide there'- for in the casing member 10. The ends of the helical spring are preferably extended.

The end 26 of this spring is bent over as indicated at 27 and adapted to be received in a notch 28 provided therefor at the inner end of the lever 20. The end 29 of the helical spring preferably passes through a groove 30 in the casing member 10 and is electrically connected as indicated at 31 to a socket terminal 32 mounted in a. recess 33 provided therefor in this end of the casing so that on one side the circuit is completed from the screw shell of the fixture through the lever 20 and the spring 25 to the terminal 32.

The lever 20 is so designed and the recesses 19 so shaped that by pressing the button 22 the inner end of the lever is moved from right to left as indicated in Fig. 2

and the contact end of the lever moved in the opposite direction so as to be withdrawn entirely within the confines of the casing. In an oppositely disposed position to the contact end of the lever 20 I employ a friction grip member 34. As indicated this comprises a plate of suitable width having a series of teeth in one edge thereof adapted to correspond with the threads in the screw shell of the socket of a fixture in order to counterbalance the plug socket and to maintain the same in a centrally disposed position relatively to the socket shell to which it may be connected. This friction grip 34 is provided with oppositely disposed lugs 35 and 36 respectively and these lugs are made to fit within recesses 37 and 38 provided therefor in the casing members 11 and 10 respectively, it being understood that the friction grip member lies in the recesses 39 and the toothed edge thereof extends an appreciable distance beyond the surface of the casing. These parts of the socket plug are so designed that when the contact end of the lever 20 is moved to lie within the casing the plug end of the casing may be sed freely into the screw shell of the soc at of the fixture and when h the lever is released to permit the contact end thereof to extend beyond the casing, this contact end of the lever will engage with the screw threads of the shell causing the teeth of the friction grip member 34 to engage the screw threads of the shell in an oppositely disposed position and to maintain the socket plug in place in the screw shell. Of course it may be desirable in some instances after the parts are thus assembled to give the socket plug a partial turn in'order to insure of making a good contact not only between the contact member 21 and the screw shell but also between the other terminal of the socket plug and the other terminal of the fixture socket as hereinafter described.

At the socket end of the socket plug there is also a terminal member 40 adapted to be suitably secured in recesses 41 provided therefor. The inner end of the terminal 40 as indicated at 42 passes through a recess provided therefor in the casing member and is connected as at 43 to a conductor 44. This conductor 44 extends through agroove 45 provided therefor in the casing member 10 and at its opposite end theconductor 44 is electrically connected to a contact member 46. This contact member 46 may be of any construction but as illustrated is made of a conically coiled wire connected at the base to the conductor 44 and adapted to lie in recesses 47 and 48 provided therefor in the casing members 11 and 10 to extend an appreciable distance beyond this plug end of the socket plug in order to make a yielding contact with the plain terminal of the lighting fixture, it being understood that when the plug socket is inserted in the screw shell and moved to position the yielding contact 46 will engage this plain terminal and if the plug socket as hereinbefore suggested is given a partial turn after being placed in position a good connection may be insured between this spring contact 46 and the plain terminal of the fixture. It will furthermore be noted that the recesses 47 and 48 are undercut so as to normally maintain the conical spring contact in position therein.

In Fig. 1 the socket member of a lighting fixture is indicated at 49 and the screw shell thereof at 50, while the other or plain terminal of the socket is indicated at 51. This figure illustrates the manner in which the socket plug may be attached to a lighting fixture socket and clearly shows that the socket end of the attachment may be readily connected to a suitable plug without removing the shade as indicated at 52 from the lighting fixture.

I claim as my invention:

1. A socket plug comprising a casing, a lever pivotally mounted in the casing and aving a contact member at one end thereof adapted to project an appreciable distance beyond the casing, a button movable in the casing and adapted to engage the opposite end of the lever to swing the same in one direction to move the contact member to a position in which it lies within the casing,

- plug terminals mounted in the casing, and

means coacting with the said lever to move the same in the opposite direction to normally maintain the contact member in a position in which a part thereof projects beyond the side of the casing and to complete the circuit between the said contact member and a plug terminal.

2. A socket plug comprising a casing, a lever pivotally mounted in the casing and having a contact member at one end thereof adapted to project an appreciable distance beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end of the same, a button movable in the casing and'adapted to engage the opposite end of the lever to swing the same in one direction in order to move the contact member to a position within the casing, plug terminals, and a spring adapted to engage the end of the lever to move the same in the opposite direction to normally maintain the contact member in a position in which it projects an appreciable distance beyond the side of the casing, and complete a circuit between the lever and one of the plug terminals and a friction grip member mounted in the casing in a position oppositely disposed to that of the electric contact member.

3. A socket plug comprising a two part cylindrical casing, a lever pivotally mounted between the parts of the casing and having an electric contact member normally ex tending a predetermined distance beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end thereof, means upon which the lever is pivotally mounted for connecting the parts of the easing, means for normally maintaining the lever in a position in which the electric contact member extends beyond the side of the casing, and means for swinging the lever to move the electric contact member to a position within the casing.

at. A socket plug comprising a two part cylindrical casing, a lever pivotally mounted between the parts of the casing and having an electric contact member at one end thereof adapted to extend a predetermined distance beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end of the same, means upon which the lever is pivotally mounted for connecting the parts ,of the casing, plug terminals mounted in' the casing, means for normally maintaining the lever in a the electric contact member extends beyond the side of the casing and for completing a circuit between the contact member and a plug terminal, and a button for swinging the lever against the action of the said means to move the contact member to a position within the casing.

5. A socket plug comprising a two part cylindrical casing, a lever pivotally mounted between the parts of the casing and having an electric contact member at one end thereof adapted to extend a predetermined distance beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end of the same, means upon which the lever is pivotally mounted for connecting the parts of the casing, plug terminals mounted in the casing, a spring adapted to normally maintain the lever yieldingly in a position in which the contact member eX- tends beyond the side of the casing and for completing a circuit between the contact member and the plug terminal, and a button for swinging the lever against the action of the spring to move the electric contact member to a position within the casing.

6. A socket plug comprising a casing, a movable electric contact member normally adapted to extend beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end thereof, a contact member in a position oppositely disposed to that of the aforesaid contact member, an end contact member, plug terminals, means for normallymaintaining the electric con tact terminal in a position in which the same extends beyond the side of the casing and for completing an electric circuit between the contactmember and one of the plug terminals, means for swinging the lever to move the electric contact member to a position in the casing, and electrical connections between the said end contact member and the other plug terminal.

7. A socket plug-comprising a casing, a movable electric contact member normally adapted to extend beyond the side of the casing adjacent one end thereof, acontact member in a position oppositely disposed to that of the aforesaid contact member, an end contact member, plug terminals, a spring at one end coacting with the said lever to normally maintain the same in a position in which the electric contact member lies extcriorly of the casing and at the other end coacting with one plug terminal to complete a circuit between the said electriccontact member and the said plug terminal, a button for swinging the lever to move the electric contact member to a position within the casing, and a conductor extending between the said end contact and the other position in whichplug terminal.

Signed by me this 20 day of July 1923. HAROLD E. SLADE. 

